Audio-Technica ATH-FC707 and Phillips O’Neill SHO4200BB/WG/RW Review

Yesterday I had the pleasure of playing around with about a dozen headsets, it was truly an audiophile’s heaven where on the buffet linAudio-Technica ATH-FC707

On display were so many popular headphones like :

• Dr. Dre’s Beats Solo HD,
• Audio-Technica ATH-FC707,
• Audio-Technica ATH-SJ11,
• Audio-Technica ATH-M50,
• Audio-Technica ATH-PRO5MS,
• Audio-Technica BB500,
• Audio-Technica ATH-FW33 Bijoue,
• Phillips O’Neill SHO4200WG,
• a few Sony MDR head phones.

I couldn’t resist getting out my iPhone and testing every one of them. It’s a good thing I didn’t have sales personnel hounding me, I was basically left alone in headphone paradise with these babies and got to try them all out!!!

Well, I reviewed the Dr. Dre’s Beats Solo HD before (I had a shoot out with it against the V-Moda LP2), so I used that as a baseline and went around and enjoyed what each had to offer.

Basically, I used these songs for the punchy bass and mid transitions:

• Moves like Jagger – Maroon 5
• Party Rock Anthem – LMFAO
• Body Language – Jesse McCartney

And then, I switched on these for the trebles and voice, once I have thoroughly decided that I liked the bass:

• I said I Love You – Babyface
• Playing for Time – Acoustic Alchemy

This is not a very thorough review since I didn’t really had the time to cross compare all those headphones. But I do know this:

If I rated Dr. Dre’s Beats Solo HD at 9/10, I would rate the Audio-Technica ATH-FC707 at 9/10 too because of its overall performance vs. VALUE. Why?

1. These headphones are pretty cheap for its performance,
2. They’re absolutely comfortable (I wear glasses and I don’t have a good time with most headsets) the head band is very flexible.
3. I thoroughly enjoyed its very balanced performance on the bass (not too overpowering but the punch is still there, the follow through is amazing), and the mids and trebles, you can truly enjoy the full entire spectrum from these babies.
4. The noise isolation is pretty good too, and it sits on the ears like a charm!

I award it 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 5 smileys!

Audio-Technica ATH-FC707 – Great value, unbeatable pricing. Get these for your total enjoyment!

Surprisingly all the other Audio-Technica headphones were only so-so with their bass being “out of this world” great but fall flat when it comes to trebles and mids.

Another honorable mention I’d like to give out is to the Phillips O’Neill SHO4200WG headphones which were 20% more expensive than the Audio-Technica ATH-FC707, I found that:

1. it too has most of the elements in place, however,
2. the performance seems to fall just a little short.
3. I would give them about 7.5/10 for overall value vs performance.
4. If you’re the type who likes showy headphones at a good decent price and looks and feel durable even though it looks really plastic. This would be a good fit for you.
5. Personally, the colors were too alien for my liking. (I’m getting old perhaps)

🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 smileys for these!

Philips O’Neill SHO4200BB/28 – Get these if you like a bit more color. Performance is not bad 😉

To wrap things up, I wasn’t really planning to write a review but the Audio-Technica ATH-FC707‘s performance really compelled me to!! Notice I hadn’t said anything of note with the Sony MDRs… Well, they’re unremarkable except for their comfort – they feel like marshmallows 🙂

Christmas is around the corner, buy these for a loved one or a good friend. They’ll thank you for it. I promise!